Photo Gallery

A Tesla fan has taken the electric carmaker to court in California due to allegedly malfunctioning Model X features and finishes that haven’t been repairable by the company.

Plaintiff Barrett Lyons has been happy with his Roadster and Model S, but has found problems with his $162,000 Tesla Model X to be unacceptable. The wing doors on the Model X appear to be causing problems.

The Model X doors have “slammed shut” on his wife and, flung open in their garage damaging the Tesla and his other gear. Other problems named in the suit include the Autopilot system being dangerous while driving through rain, which Lyons says that “it causes the car to swerve into different lanes.”

“The doors do some weird, wicked things,” Lyons told the Courthouse News Service. “If you get in and slide sideways and accidentally tap the brake, the driver’s side door slams shut on your leg. That’s not a very nice thing to have happen to you.”

Lyons is now asking the Placer County Court to make Tesla buy back his Model X for the nearly $162,000 he paid. He’s also asked to court to include reimbursement for his registration fee, damages for breach of warranty and violation of California’s “lemon laws,” and court costs.

“You buy a car like that, you expect it to work,” Lyons said. “It’s become clear to me that the car wasn’t ready for consumers. The service center is completely unprepared for the kind of problems they’re having.”